FOR all the ineptitude of the Portuguese police “hunting” Madeleine McCann, their most shameful act was the persecution of the little girl’s parents.

A mum and dad are obvious targets for initial suspicion when a child goes missing. But in this case there was not one shred of evidence.

All the vicious leaks about DNA traces and alibis that didn’t add up were nonsense.

The police had tunnel vision. They simply did not believe a child could be kidnapped on their patch and made Kate and Gerry “arguidos” because they had nothing else.

So, on top of the pain, longing and guilt they already endured, the McCanns had to live with the black mark of suspicion too.

The lifting of their suspect status after ten months will be a merciful end to this particular chapter.

But for them — if not for Portugal’s witless detectives — the story goes on.